Boy's Room Decor: Batman Hat Rack

Batman Hat Rack

Project #3 of the Boy's Room Superhero Remodel is a Batman Hat (or belt) Rack.

This project consisted of only a few inexpensive items:

Scrap wood

Modge Podge

Small hooks

AND of course... Batman Duct Tape (Scotch Brand)

So to get started I rummaged through the wood pile and decided on a thin but long 1x6" piece of scrap wood

It's old.. Dirty.. And has previous nail holes but it won't matter when it's finished!

I cleaned up the board with water and a little bit of sanding and it was time for the Duct Tape :-)

The Batman symbols glow in the dark!

I applied 4 rows of tape. Being careful to cover all edges (top, bottom and sides). 

The most difficult part of this project is lining up the rows so the symbols match up evenly and appear to be one complete piece when finished.

Tedious but worth it!

My finished board looked like this..

You can't even tell there are 4 strips of tape on this board :-)

Next, I applied Modge Podge in a very thin layer to seal the entire project and prevent the tape from peeling away.

Once dry I placed sawtooth hangers on the back and finished the project with small hooks to hold the hats and/or belts...

Clearly it is not hanging in the boys room yet but I wanted to share the project itself with you and will later reveal the completed masterpiece! 

I think I will be adding a top row of hooks as well so that this can truly be utilized for belts AND hats... I will be sure to include the updated version in the grand finale!

If you missed Project #1 or Project #2 view them now! You won't want to miss all the great pieces to the superhero puzzle that will be coming together soon!

Boy's Room Decor: Wooden Superman Logo

Project #2 of the Boy's Room Superhero Remodel is a hand painted, wooden Superman Logo

This project did not involve my superhero duck tape lol!

It consisted of time, paint and more meticulous TIME!

Materials needed:

Plywood

Paint- red and yellow

Jigsaw

Sand paper

Ruler

Pencil

Superman Logo to follow

I googled several logos and chose to free hand the image onto my plywood.

I first created the exterior portion of the logo on the plywood with pencil... Once I was satisfied I cut it out using a jigsaw.

I then, lightly sanded the edges with 60 grit sandpaper

Next, I needed a logo that was clear and easy to follow for my S design. Since I was not using it as a stencil I chose two and bounced between them when drawing to get better detail.

Here are the logos I followed:

Note: make sure you have a GOOD eraser :-)

This is how mine turned out:

Now it's time to paint!

I painted the red portion first...

I just used basic acrylic paint.

Once dry, apply yellow and voila! You have a Superman Logo or "shield" as my son calls it!

If you missed Project #1 view it Here

Superhero Bedroom Decor

Project #1: Superhero Duck Tape Shelves

My boys Matthew (5) and Dylan (2) are superhero FANATICS! Every day is jam packed with fighting villains and rescuing their imaginary victims. So it was SUPER easy coming up with bedroom decor they would LOVE! 

We are trading in the drab, toddler safari theme for an exciting and more enjoyable "big boy" SUPERHERO decor... 

My first project included TWO things:

*Superhero Duck Tape

Purchased at Walmart 

*Block Shelves

Previously purchased from Target

Since this project was my own, I was learning as I went... The first shelf was more of a headache and the second went ever so easy!

So... My finalized how to instructions are a combination of BOTH shelves.

To begin:

Start with the outer edges, the Comic Duck Tape is wrapped around the entire outer edge... Beginning and ending on the bottom.

Meet the beginning and ending of the strip together and cut away excess evenly.

The Avengers Duck Tape is draped over the front edge and cut to allow BOTH sides to show the superheroes facing the correct direction.

I continued in this fashion completing another strip, butting up exactly to the edge of the previous strip.

As you can see there is still a small area of shelf exposed, for this I continued the same way as the two previous strips and was left with this

Carefully cut away the excess and the outer portion of the shelves are complete!

 

I got a lot wiser with the second shelf and measured each inside piece of tape before cutting and applying

The first shelf was a little more stressful and my husband attempted to help..

Eyeing the pieces and allowing them to overlap was quite a bit more frustrating! The second shelf went A LOT smoother.

I continued with three rows of tape just as I did the outside, cutting away the excess and being sure to seal all air pockets.

Done!!

This is how they turned out....

I can't wait to show you the rest of my Superhero room decor projects I have in the works! 

Hope you enjoy and find this useful! Feel free to share!

The Time Out Chair

This summer, having all three kids home all the time, has brought on a whole new set of challenges. Dylan, my youngest (2), was MUCH easier to handle while the two oldest were at school (of course, I know!) Now he has started picking up, at a very rapid pace, the characteristics of his siblings. Matthew (5) LOVES super heros and pretending. Alexis (8) enjoys swimming and playing outside. Dylan has not only learned how to play right along with them in these activities but also picked up on their bad habits, their bad attitudes at times and most of all their back talking. He's TWO! Not even close to THREE! He is acting TOO old and this has presented a struggle. Does he know right from wrong? Or is this just monkey see monkey do and will blow over when school starts again?! 

After many discussions with my husband about tightening up the ship, a lightbulb went off. I bet when Alexis and Matthew are sent to their rooms for bad behavior (our current punishment), Dylan doesn't get it. He sees them go upstairs and take their punishment then return to playing with him a few minutes later. He doesn't understand why they went to their rooms or what they were sent up there for. So in an effort to correct this learned behavior, everyone's punishment will be the same (in most scenarios). If you misbehave, you get to sit in the TIME OUT CHAIR. 

Everyone including Dylan. He is not too young for small time outs and he will have a better understanding of his brother and sisters punishment seeing them sit in "time out" also. He may even catch on a little quicker! The only thing that worries me - I only have ONE "time out chair" :-)

Now... On to the "Time Out Chair" project!

I happened to already have a chair on hand. I've had it for years and it really hasn't served much purpose, other than a step stool at times :-)

I cleaned it thoroughly with a towel and water to remove any grim that has collected. I then sanded it down a bit with hubby's sander and fine grit sandpaper to smooth out any rough spots.

Cleaned the surface again with a towel and a little water. Now it's ready to paint!

I enjoy using stuff I already have around the house. It also helps my wallet AND my husbands piece of mind when it comes to my crafting :-)

I searched the house and came up with this black paint (pictured above). PERFECT! I didn't have primer so I just applied two coats of black paint to the entire chair. It's BLACK, it shouldn't need primer ;-)

Now I needed to create the "TIME OUT" design for the seat of the chair....

I LOVE to Modge Podge everything so what I dug up was also perfect! I rummaged thru my scrapbook paper and pulled out an assortment of punch out letters (pictured above). I chose my design and applied the letters using Modge Podge. Note: make sure to press each letter firmly to prevent air bubbles! I applied four THICK coats of Modge Podge over the surface of the seat. I wanted to make sure the letters didn't come off while Dylan's little booty squirmed around on it in "time out" :-)

AND DRUM ROLL PLEASE.....

Ta-Dah! Project complete!! Now, who will be the first to use it?!? This should be interesting.....

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DIY Modge Podge Wood Letters

This project came about via a friend/coworker. Discussing crafts at work, I discovered an amazing little shop based out of Utah (My coworkers hometown) called The Wood Connection. This shop is a modge podge, crafters DREAM! Or my crafting dream, whichever :-). I've never been IN the store but have heard about it! Wall to wall craft projects made out of... You guessed it... WOOD! I have not found anything that compares in the local shops such as Hobby Lobby and Michaels. They have quality products, free standing wooden letters great for any artsy fartsy person such as myself :-) and are very reasonably priced!!

At first, I was placing orders thru my coworker to bring back from her visits. Now, they have a website with ready to ship items! LOVE IT!! Their website is www.thewoodconnection.com

Visit the website and fall in love!! 

I bought the wooden "HOME" letters for $9.95 and decided to create something for my entryway that tied into my living room contemporary art I am having a hard time matching.

I chose the colorbök brand scrapbook paper to help tie in my paintings. There are 50 pages of assorted designs for $9.95. You don't need the entire book for this project but I also scrapbook so it was a good price.

I use the glossier Modge Podge and chose Harvest Orange Acrylic Paint for the wood. 

Once you choose your color, theme and wood to decorate all you need is time and a paint brush!

Materials Needed:

Wooden letters of choice 

Modge Podge

Acrylic Paint

Paint brush

Scrapbook paper

Embellishments of choice (optional)

Hot glue gun and glue

Pencil

Scissors

•To get started, choose a page or two of scrapbook paper per letter. (Each of my letters have two paper designs per letter)

•Turn paper over, white or back side up. Lay wooden letter BACKWARDS or face down on paper and trace with pencil.

•Cut out paper letters with scissors

•Next, paint each letter with acrylic paint of choice and allow to dry.

NOW IT'S TIME TO BE CREATIVE!

Lay out each letter design and cut scrapbook paper to fit before glueing. As you can see on my letters there are two designs cut to fit together on each letter

•Apply Modge Podge to your first letter and place scrapbook paper. Press firmly to prevent air bubbles. Allow to dry and on to the next letter!

•After adding scrapbook paper apply another coat of Modge Podge to the front of paper and letter to seal in your perfection ;-) allow to dry

•Place embellishments of choice to letters using hot glue and voilá! You have another project completed to make your house a HOME!

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Any questions?! Don't hesitate to ask!

Edamame Seasoning Recipe

When our little family moved from Kansas to Oklahoma a few years ago, I assumed it wouldn't be much different than my home state. I mean its only a hop, skip and a jump away from my home town!  In the beginning it wasn't different at all, just a new place to call home! After almost four years I still have only found a few things I could write home about. 

One thing that's different.... Or maybe I lived in a bubble back home... Is Edamame. I had NEVER heard of such a thing before now. Maybe there are others that don't know about it to! If that's the case, let me fill you in :-). Edamame is soybeans in the pod! At first, I thought it was odd watching people eat them like you would a sunflower seed. Then, I tried one and now I'm hooked! It's a great healthy snack, fills you up and it's actually pretty tasty (seasoned of course)!

I first started preparing the edamame with a seasoning recipe my friends shared with me.... Basically a garlic and salt combo. But I wanted something more, something with more flavor and a little spice!

I came up with my own recipe and love it!

I use the Pictsweet Brand... It's a 13oz bag of deliciousness! (With my seasoning of course)

Seasoning mix:

Combine in a small bowl...

 Heat edamame as directed on bag, pour seasoning over pods, shake and enjoy! 

A healthy and spicy treat!

*Note: only eat the soybeans NOT the pod ;-)

Enjoy!

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Playroom Canvas Paintings

My daughter told me recently, "Mom, when I grow up, I want to start craft classes and teach people how to make fun things like what you have taught me." That made my heart melt! She enjoys our time together and loves doing projects as much as I do! If she's bored she asks, "Mom are you feeling crafty?" 

Last week, when family was in town, there wasn't much time for being bored! We had so many projects and shared great memories with her, my brothers, my stepmom and my boys! Another playroom project we completed involved all the kiddos. Sonya and I even got our hands dirty and painted as well. 

Materials needed for this project:

7 12x12 blank canvas

Masking tape (1 inch wide)

Assorted acrylic paints (I chose vibrant colors)

Sponge paint brushes (easier for kids)

And the kiddos creativity!

Before painting, prep the canvas with masking tape. There is no right or wrong way to do this. Place masking tape vertically, horizontally, short pieces, long pieces, making triangles or squares! 

Make sure the tape drapes over the edges to continue the effect. Don't allow any air bubbles at the edges of the tape or it will get painted!

Once you prep them its up to the kids to make the art!

Allow to dry, remove the tape and you have beautiful kid inspired artwork for any room!!

We chose to hang this art in the playroom and hang it in a "hopscotch" fashion. We also threw around the idea of adding numbers in the center to complete the hopscotch look but didn't want to take away from the beautiful masterpieces the kids created!

I hope you enjoy! We all did! It even allowed family that isn't in town often to leave a piece of their art work behind, not to mention great memories shared! 

Any questions don't hesitate to ask!

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